


Help, Help I'm Drowning

by lookingforanswers



Category: The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: F/F, I guess angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-04
Updated: 2016-01-16
Packaged: 2018-05-05 00:01:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 11,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5353253
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lookingforanswers/pseuds/lookingforanswers
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This was supposed to Mary Louise and Nora's day but I guess plans never do work the way you want them too. </p>
<p>Just something I wrote after episode 7x08 because it left me heartbroken.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys, so this is something that just came to me after watching last nights episode. So mad that they did that but thank god for fanfic. So I don't really write but I just wanted to put this out there and see what people thought. This is not beta read so any mistakes are mine. Feel free to let me know what you guys thought.

You ruined it. You ruined all of it. First Nora and now Lily. Why did you do it? You should have believed Valerie; everyone did. 

After Julian told you what happened you realized that there was no way to fix this. Julian went on with his rampage of destroying everything in sight, while you just sat there thinking of how everything fell apart within hours. 

You were so lost in thought you didn’t even realize that Julian had left and now you were all alone with this mess, reminding you of what you caused. You looked down at your hands and that’s when you saw it. The ring. The ring that was supposed to show the world the love you have for Nora. 

Seeing they way Nora’s eyes lit up and the smile that broke out on her face when you asked, brought tears to your eyes. You knew she was going to say but a part of you was still doubtful. We recently hadn’t been on the best of terms. Nora adapted much faster to this new world while you were left struggling, trying to figure how everything worked. You felt Nora’s frustration when she tried to teach you different things and you couldn’t quite grasp the hang of it. You should have tried harder for her, you could have showed her that you did want to learn the ways, not just make crude comments and dismiss her teachings. You knew you were controlling, but that’s because you were afraid that Nora was going to leave you. You didn’t mean for her to feel like a child, as if she needed protection. Turns out that you needed her much more than she needed you. 

You didn’t know it was possible for your heart to hurt this much. The look Nora had given you when she realized what you had done, just shattered you. But the final blow was when she took off the ring and gave it back to you saying “I don’t want it. I don’t want any of it”.

What did that even mean? Was she done with us, for good? Did she really want to throw away 133 years together, even after everything we had been through? Did one bad decision have all that power? 

Feeling so much rage, you threw the ring against the wall. You heard it make impact but you couldn’t see where it had fallen. You couldn’t bear to look at it anyways. But luck not being on your side, the light from the lamp caught a gleam of the diamond and there it was, mocking you, reminding you of what was supposed to be the best day of your life and how it turned out to be one of the worst. 

You didn’t even realize that you had started crying until you felt a tear land on the palm of your hand. Not caring, you let them flow down your cheeks. Feeling a lump on the back of your throat, you tried swallowing it but instead of it going away it turned into a shuddered breath. 

Looking around the room with tear filled eyes you saw the mess that Julian had created. He too just lost the love of his life, but unlike me, my love wasn’t dead. 

Oh god, Lily. She was dead, wasn’t she?

Turning around, you looked at the table you were leaning on and with anger and sadness you slammed your fist and cracked the table in half. 

Feeling the splinters embed themselves in your hand, you didn’t care. You deserved this. Picking up the now two pieces of the table you threw them against the wall, making them break into smaller pieces. Going on a rampage just like Julian, you too picked up anything you could find and started throwing them. Glass shattered, wood cracked, paper burned, everything was becoming a mess. Tears blurred your vision and no matter how many times you blinked them away, they just kept building up. 

Finally resigning, you let out a breath and stood in the middle of the chaos, eyes closed, clenched fists, head down, and shoulders slumped. You don’t know for how long you stayed like that but you came out of your reverie when you felt a hand on your shoulder. 

Jumping at the sudden touch, you turned around and saw Beau, stoic, no emotion present in his body but you could see the pain in his eyes. 

Looking into his eyes, he saw the question you wanted to ask floating in your eyes and with a firm nod he confirmed it. Feeling another flood of tears forming in your eyes, you turned away from him and stared into the fireplace. 

Giving your shoulder a squeeze, Beau walked away and you heard his footsteps retreat until you heard him no more. 

You needed to get out of here. You felt as if you were being suffocated. Looking around the destruction you had caused you walked out of the room and into the hallway. Not a sound was heard, just the clicking of the heals making contact against the tiled floor. You walked straight to the front door, not once looking at your surroundings. 

Once the cool night air hit you, you let out a breath and without looking back, you continued down the steps and onto the pathway, walking away from everything.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Continuation of Mary-Louise thoughts based on her actions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't really have a plan for this story but I'm open to any suggestions. Let me know what you guys think about this chapter and how I can improve. I am not a writer but I try my best, this is not beta read so let me know about any errors you see. Kudos and comments are appreciated.

You didn’t realize which way you were walking in until you reached the boardwalk of the river. The same place where you proposed. The pink ribbons were still in place along with the lanterns. But unlike this afternoon where it was a place of sunshine and happy memories it was now a place that screamed cold. The lanterns shone bright but all you wanted to do was smash them and stop them from illuminating. You just wanted to be surrounded by darkness. 

Facing the river, you felt the breeze coming from the water, hair moving swiftly with the wind. Grabbing ahold of the railing you wondered what was going on back at the house. 

Were the Salvatore’s still there? Julian? Beau? Valerie? Nora?

You imagine either Damon or Valerie told Stefan what happened and now you were probably next. They had a plan and you just ignored it. You know its wrong to keep blaming yourself but who else did you have to blame. 

You had your doubts about Valerie and her story. She had lied to you before, how could you have known she was telling the truth. When she told you her story, Beau and Nora took her side but you held back. How could a man who loved you like his own child do that? The same man who told you why your relationship was on the rocks. Everyone was expecting you to believe Valerie but you still couldn’t process it, not until Nora called out to you and that’s when you realized that you had to believe her, everyone did, Nora did.

All your doubts came back when you saw Julian tied up. In a moment of panic, you took out Damon and Valerie. Him laughing in disbelief, saying the words that would make you regret your decision, “And that, Mary-Louise is why you have always been my favorite”. He knew that you were loyal to him and why wouldn’t you be. He had done nothing wrong to make you question his motives. That’s when you realized that that was what he wanted all along. You became a pawn in the game without even realizing it. 

Everything he did for you was leading up to this. The advice. The talking to Lily to allow us to move around town more freely. The party. The ring. The ring he gave you knowing that you wouldn’t be able to say no. Taking the ring was his final move. It was checkmate. He knew that if you took it you were indebted to him. He knew that Nora was going to love it and all you wanted was to see Nora happy, so you took it. 

“This doesn’t represent our love. This represents Julian’s ability to manipulate us.” Manipulate it did. Ruin everything it did. 

How could you have been so stupid? Falling for all of it? You would think that being alive for over a century you would know all the tricks in the book but it’s true what they say about how love makes you do stupid things. It wasn’t as if you craved for the attention, he gave it and you took it without thinking about the consequences. 

Looking out into the river, you wished that your life could be as calm as it was, not a ripple in sight. But unlike the river, your life looked like an ocean caught in a storm, waves crashing against each other with no clue as to when it was going to settle down. 

For the second time that night, you were caught by surprise. Sensing a presence, you looked to your right and that’s when you saw her. She was standing right next to you, staring out into the river. She had been crying, her eyes clearly reflected that. Her once bright eyes were now covered with a film of sadness and all you wanted to do was to hold her and tell her how sorry you were. 

This wasn’t the time for talking though. You both had just lost a mom. So without saying anything you grabbed her hand. You could tell she was nonplussed by your action because you felt her hand jerk in surprise but instead of letting her hand go, you intertwined your fingers and in silence you both stared out into the river, hoping that there was a way to fix all of it.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just Nora's perspective on the events that happened in 7x08

Nora's P.O.V

You were in shock. Had Mary-Louise really chosen to believe him after everything Valerie had told us? Yes, Valerie wasn't the most honest person but this couldn't have been a lie. This was her child. You couldn't imagine what Valerie was going through, watching all of us side with Julian while she stood on the sideline, watching the man who ruined her life manipulate his way into ours.

When you sought out Mare in the staircase and saw her tear stained cheeks you knew she had done something bad. You could tell it was eating her from the inside. She told you what she had done and you just stood there in shock, trying to process everything she had said. You knew that she tended to make rash decisions, but you certainly hadn't expected this. You argued the fact that this was a different situation and that Valerie wouldn't lie, but she just retaliated by saying that this was coming from the person who had lied to us before and that this is exactly what Valerie wanted us to believe.

At that point, you knew that there was nothing you could say to make her believe. Standing there in silence, staring into her confused and angered eyes you felt a weight on your hand. The ring. The symbol that would unite us for eternity now felt like a symbol of manipulation. Watching the diamond shimmer, you realized what needed to be done. Slipping it off your finger, you heard Mare question what you were doing. Putting it on the table, you gazed into her green teary eyes, yours replicating hers and told her that you didn't want it. You didn't want any of it. Going down the steps, you heard her calling out for you in desperation. You never knew you could hear so much sadness in someone's voice, but there it was, crying out for you, needing you, just craving out for your attention. Without looking back, you continued down the steps, tears running down your face and her voice ringing in your ears.

Entering the room in which everyone was gathered, you noticed Lily gasping for air as there was a stake embedded in her heart. Everyone's face was in utter shock as to what just happened. Julian was in the corner shaking in anger and sadness, telling her how much he loved her and how they had already been unlinked.

As Julian ran out of the room, you led Lily to the sofa and removed the stake from her. Tears were clouding your eyesight as your bloody hands tried to remove the wood splinters that still seemed to be in her, but it was futile. Turning your gaze to Stefan, you asked what you should do, and he said that there was nothing that you could do and to just to say your goodbyes.

No, you weren't ready to say goodbye. You just were reunited after years of being locked away. This was the woman who took you in after everything, this was your mother. She was there when you needed her. Yes, she was strict but isn't that what a mother is; someone who loves you, protects you while at the same time enforcing rules knowing that they were for the best.

Holding Lily's hand, you didn't say anything, but she knew what you were trying to convey. Giving her hand a squeeze you stood up and walked out.

Once outside, you supported yourself by firmly grasping onto the door frame. It was then when everything came rushing in. Lily was dead and you had walked out of an important conversation with Mary-Lou.

Oh God, you gave her back the ring. She's probably thinking about how you don't want to marry her. That wasn't the case, you just couldn't keep that ring. You love Mary-Louise. You have and always will but you couldn't. It didn't represent your love. It just represented manipulation.

Taking a deep breath, wiping your tear stained cheeks, you stood up straight and proceeded to head to your room. You needed to lie down. So many things happened today and you just wanted it to be over. As if your feet had a mind of their own, they automatically led you to your room and as soon as you opened the door you heard glass shattering, heavy objects crashing, the thumps resounding from the walls.

Must be Julian, you thought as you entered and closed the door. What you didn't know was that it wasn't Julian downstairs, but rather it was Mary-Louise.

Flicking on the lights, you advanced towards the bed removing your heels as you went, sliding them away from you. You sat on the bed and while running your hand through your hair, you let out a much-needed sigh. What a day it had been.

Looking around the room, your eyes caught sight of a pink piece of stationary on the dresser. Curiosity got the best of you so you stood up and went to reach for it. Upon grabbing the note, a new set of tears formed. This time without the help of your blinking eyes, the tears automatically streamed down your face. A note from Mare. The handwriting neat and clear as always, but instead of her usual sharp letters you could see that they had a softer undertone to them. You brought the letter up to your face and proceeded to read.

_My dearest Nora,_

_Today is the day I am going to ask you to marry me. It's been 133 since we have been together and I want the world to recognize that you are the love of my life, not just for the upcoming centuries but for eternity. You have always been the one for me and I hope you think that I'm the one for you._

_Recently everything has been changing and that I've been acting much different. It's been hard for me to adjust to this new world and seeing you adapt so well and quickly makes me sometimes think how maybe one day you will leave me. I get so insecure knowing that I can't catch up with you and I can sense the frustration that you have with me. I don't blame anything on you, just on me, you're just trying to help._

_Even though I'm still not used to everything, I can say that I do enjoy being able to show my affection for you more publicly. The things that you do to me Nora. The way your hair cascades over your shoulders in loose curls, the way you smile, and your eyes. Oh, your eyes, how they gleam up with excitement or danger when things go your way. Even after 133 years, you are still the most beautiful woman I have ever met. When I feel your presence my eyes automatically look for you. It's as if I can't function without catching a glimpse of you._

_There are certainly not enough words in the world to express the feelings I have for you but the words that come to mind when I think about you are just simply three words. I love you. The most over-used words in the world but unlike everyone else, I mean it. You are my one true love, my everything._

Oh _Nora, I can't wait to show you what I have prepared for you today. You should see the ring I bought for you. Not the one I would have chosen but due to our current living situation, it was the best I could find. I just hope you like it, it's not the size of the rock that matters but it's the meaning behind it, right? You deserve the best of everything and I plan on giving that to you forever if you give me the chance._

_With so much love,_

_Mary-Louise_

You didn't know how many times you read the letter, trying to memorize all the words. A tear landed on the note, ink mixing with water, smearing her signature. Trying to catch your breath, you placed the note on the dresser and let out a whimper. Now sobbing, all the events from today came back. The party, the proposal, the betrayal, Lily's death. This was all just too much. You needed some fresh air.

Grabbing the note, you slipped on some sandals and headed downstairs. Walking down the hallway, heading to the front door you caught a glimpse of the debris that was left in one of the rooms.

Exiting the house, you went down the porch and headed to the boardwalk by the river. It was the one place Mare wouldn't look for you, the one place that would remind her of what she lost. Reaching the boardwalk, you noticed someone standing there and to your surprise, she was there. From your angle, you could see that she was lost in thought as she hadn't noticed you walking towards her. Her eyes were blank; no emotion in them. You stood next to her and stared out into the river. Finally, she sensed a presence and looked to her right as you were just standing there. From your peripheral, you saw her just staring at you, eyes running all over your face. Without saying a word, she grabbed your hand and surprised by the action your hand twitched but instead of her letting go, she laced her fingers with yours.

Staring out into the river, both of you were thinking about what was about to come. One thinking of how they could fix this while the other thought if it was even fixable.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here's another update. Hope you guys like it and remember to review and give it kudos. If you have any recommendations on what you guys would like to see let me know cause I have no real story line planned out.

Mary-Louise POV

We stood there holding hands, staring out, not saying anything, in fear that if one of us broke the silence we would have to face reality. Letting out a breath she let go of your hand and turned towards you. 

“We need to talk,” she said in a whisper.

Unable to say anything due to the lump stuck in your throat you just slowly nodded. 

“Can you, at least, face me while we do this?” 

Do what exactly? is what you wanted to ask but you held your tongue. You could already tell she was losing patience and the conversation hadn’t even begun. Turning to face her you got a real look at her. She looked tired but overall you still thought she looked perfect. Looking away from her, you looked down at your hands and saw the dried blood from the cuts you had received from all the glass and wood you broke. The cuts were now long gone but the blood still there, reminding you of everything. 

“What happened to your hands?” Nora said as she looked down at them, trying to see if you had any other injuries. 

“Nothing to worry about.” you said as she nodded in response. 

“Well then.” she said. 

“Well then what?” you responded in a firm tone. 

“Don’t you have anything you want to say? Maybe apologize?” 

The question shocked you, you did what you had to do and though others might not see it as the best decision you stood behind it. 

“Apologize for what?”

“Mare, are you serious right now? You let Julian loose and because of that Lily’s dead or did you not know that? Our mother is dead because of that monster. He killed her. She had everything planned out, she was going to kill him, but she didn’t know that you had already unlinked them” she said now raising her voice while getting closer to your face. 

Clenching your jaw in anger, you responded “No. No, he didn’t kill her. He loved her. Her death is affecting him just as much as it's affecting us. Nora, he didn’t do this, Valerie did. The only one to blame for all of this is Valerie and her story.”

“You still don’t believe her. Julian is responsible for all of this, but you’re too blind to see it.”

“Julian wouldn’t do that. Why do all of a sudden do we have to believe Valerie? She’s lied before. She could have told us this story years ago. Don’t you see, she’s trying to tear everyone apart from each other and it’s working. She wants the sympathy and it’s working. So no, I’m not going to apologize, because this is on her, not on me or on Julian” you said. Clenching your hands into tight fists, you continued. “And shouldn’t you be apologizing to me?” 

Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion and said “Me? I haven’t done anything.”

You felt the tears wanting to make an appearance, but you held them back and said, “You’re the one who told me you wanted to marry me and then you basically through the ring back in my face.” 

“You mean Julian’s ring?” You sighed, you knew you should have just given her the one you bought in the first place. Moving her hands from behind her back to the front, your eyes landed on the piece of paper that she held in her hand. The note you wrote this morning. The one where you wrote about how you felt about her, about how nervous you were feeling this morning. 

“I found this on the dresser,” she said as she moved the letter around in her hand. 

The anger you had just minutes ago was now replaced by heartache. Stepping into her personal space, you looked at her in the eyes. Your eyes searched hers, trying to find any sign of forgiveness, but none was present. 

“Mare, I don’t think think I can do this. I can’t take any more of this fighting” she breathed out, the puffs of air reaching your face. 

“Do what exactly?” your said in a whisper, scared of what was about to come. 

“This Mary-Lou. Us. I can’t do it anymore. It’s… it’s over.” Listening to the words she was saying, you stood there numb just barely nodding your head to them. This was it, the moment you had been expecting from some time now. You knew it was bound to happen but still, hearing the words confirming it hurt you more than what you expected. 133 years of being together and this was it. Completely done in a matter of minutes. 

Taking a step back, you grabbed onto the railing and gripped at it, all while staring into her eyes. The sadness you had in you was now being overruled by the insecurities that you’ve had for a while. 

“You’ve been wanting this for a long time haven’t you? You were just waiting for the right time, weren’t you?” 

“Mare, stop, that’s not true.”

“But it is isn’t it? Trying to make me do things knowing I’m not comfortable, the Halloween party and that girl. You getting frustrated when I don’t get things the first time. You telling me that I’m smothering you and how I don’t let you do anything, basically treating you like a child. Remember that? It is what you said to me. I can’t change who I am Nora” you said angered. 

“You don’t even try, though,” she said dejectedly, not even trying to argue the things I said. 

“I do Nora, it’s just not at the speed you want it.”

“It’s not enough though Mary-Lou. There are so many things I want to do with you, but you, always turn them down. It’s like if you’re scared of what’s going to happen.”

Laughing at the thought of you being scared you said, “You think I’m scared of some humans? They mean nothing to me.”

“And that’s why I can’t do this anymore. We’re stuck here and we have to learn to adapt with them. You just can’t keep yourself hidden away from everything Mare.”

Realizing that this conversation wasn’t going the way you wanted and in one last attempt to save your relationship you said, “I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I haven’t tried hard enough, but I promise that this time I will. Just give me a chance to prove myself.”

Nora now with tears in her eyes, ran her fingers through her hair and responded, “I wish I could believe that Mare but its just not enough. The thing with Julian, I just can’t forget.”

“So that’s it? Do 133 years mean nothing to you?”

“Lou, you know those were the best years, but I just can’t keep doing this. It’s too much and I just can’t.”

You wrapped your arms around your torso, wanting to be anywhere but here and that’s when your eyes fell on the letter she still had in her hand. Reaching forward to grab it she pulled her hand away making you grab air. 

In a shaky voice, you told her that you were going to need that back. 

“No, it's addressed to me.”

“Yes, but I wrote it so therefore it's mine,” you said as you made another grab for it. She again pulled her hand away from you. 

“Please Nora, just give it to me.”

“Why do you want it so bad? Mary-Lou, everything you said was so lovely” she said as her eyes fell onto the words on the paper. She now was acting like a petulant child and I just wanted the note so that I could burn it. I didn’t want any recollection of what happened today. 

“Yes, that’s because everything I wrote I meant, but now I don’t know what I was thinking. This was supposed to be the happiest day of my life, but now it’s not so I need to get rid of it. I just can’t stand the fact that if I don’t get that note back it will just be there. Reminding me, taunting me of how everything fell apart. This may be easy for you, but it’s not for me Nora, so give it now” you said angered at the fact that she wouldn’t listen to you. 

Without saying anything, she handed it to you and you grabbed it quickly. Holding the letter in your hand, you crushed it into a ball. Both of you, now with tears in your eyes held each other's gaze. This was it. After this, it will be set. Knowing that you couldn’t do anything else, you nodded at her and went in for a hug. You need to feel her for one last time. 

Wrapping your arms around her waist, she too wrapped hers around your neck. Your head now buried in her neck you took in a deep breath, trying to grasp onto her touch and smell. You felt her tears on your neck and you knew it was time to walk away. With one last deep breath, you removed your hands from her waist, and her gaze. Removing her hands from your neck and dropping them to her side, you placed a soft kiss on her cheek and walked away. 

As you were walking away, if it wasn’t for your vampire hearing you wouldn’t have heard her say “I’m so sorry.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, hope you're enjoying everything so far. This might be my last update for the year cause I'm going to be out of the country till New Years but don't worry I'll try my best to update if/when I get the chance. I also wanted to know what you guys think about bringing an OC character or anyone from the vampire diaries/the originals universe to befriend Mary-Louise or Nora (was thinking more Mary-Louise but whatever you guys like). Doesn't have to be romantic it could be just friendship, so let me know what you guys think.
> 
> As always, review, follow, favorite so I know what you guy think.

Mary-Louise POV

It was the day after the breakup and last night you didn't go back to the house. After you left Nora standing there you just walked around, numb. Finally, you ended up at a park and just sat on one of the benches. You sat there for hours just staring into space, letter crumbled in your hand. The sun rose and you still were there, sitting. You finally headed back to the house and silence welcomed you. Not daring to go up to what used to be yours and Nora's room you went into another and just laid on the couch.

You didn't realize you had fallen asleep until you heard noises making your eyes open. Hearing footsteps upstairs, you tried to place the person. Hearing heels make contact with the floor you realized that it was Nora. Drawers were being opened and slammed along with the closet doors. She was leaving the house, leaving you. You wanted so badly to go up there and see her, to try and stop her, but you stopped yourself. She made it clear that you were broken up. You might not be used to these new times, but you did know what breaking up entails.

Where was she planning on going? It's not like we had friends to go to.

Listening to her move around the room made you realize that you had to do something. If you were going to get back together you had to show her that you were willing to change not just for her but for yourself.

* * *

A few days passed after Nora moved out and the house was filled with silence as there was no one here except for you and maybe Beau, but you weren't sure. You hadn't seen Julian since he left telling you that he would keep in contact with you.

Today was the day of Lily's burial and after debating whether to go or not, you justified that you owed Lily that much. She was there when no one else was and if it wasn't for her then you don't know where you'd be right now.

Light snow was falling as you walked through the forest towards where they were going to bury Lily. Finally, you saw the clearing and there stood Nora, Valerie with Stefan and Damon carrying the casket. You stopped several feet away, making sure they wouldn't sense someone and if they did you would just cloak yourself. You heard Damon ask Nora where I was and she just said that it was none of his concern. He kept on asking if there was trouble in paradise, and you could tell Nora was losing her patience. Her tone was filled with anger and one more word from Damon and he was going to regret it.

You heard them say their last words and you saw Valerie give Stefan some flowers. This was all her fault and there she was fooling everyone. As they turned to leave you left without making a noise. You couldn't let them see you.

Going back to the house you went to one of the guest rooms. That's where you've been sleeping not having the courage to sleep in the room you shared with Nora. Not yet anyways. You only entered when you needed to get dressed and nothing else. The memory still fresh in your mind.

Having nothing to do in the house you went outside and just walked through the streets making sure no one was looking for you. You were sure they were looking for Julian and I was soon to be next. You spent most of your time sitting in the park, just staring out into space not really thinking about anything.

You were ashamed of yourself. You had been following Nora these past few days and saw that she moved into a dorm. She enrolled in classes at the college something she had mentioned before, but you weren't fond of the idea. What would happen if you enrolled too? Maybe you can show Nora that you were trying and it might help reconcile your relationship.

You thought of sending her flowers but dismissed that idea. Getting up from the bench, you walked through the main street, people were getting their Christmas shopping done. Watching everyone with their loved ones made you remember that this was going to be the first Christmas you were going to spend alone in over a century.

Passing through a toy shop you stopped and stared into the window. All the toys on display, the different objects, and colors attracting every child that passed by the window. You entered the shop and your nose was overwhelmed with the smell of gingerbread. Your ears picked up every squeal, laughter and highly pitched voices the children made while running around showing their parents the different toys they could get their hands on. You scanned the store and saw the variety of toys they offered. Dolls, blocks, action figures, digital games and finally the wall filled with different stuffed animals.

Walking through the store, your eyes lingered at everything seeing if anything popped out at you. Nothing called your attention and that's how you ended up facing the ceiling high shelf filled with stuffed animals. There were just so many, how could anyone possibly choose just one.

Staring at all the animals, you began to wonder what you were even doing. Why were you even in here? Lost in thought, you didn't realize someone tugging at your sleeve till they pulled a little harder pulling your arm along. Shocked at the touch, you were ready to attack the person who dared to touch you. Not seeing anyone at your eye level you looked down and that's when you saw the child.

A little girl no more than six years standing there in a light pink dress and a coat swaying side-to-side, her blonde hair in two braids covered by a hat with an animal face which you were sure was a panda, her green eyes sparkling at you and her mouth in a wide smile, her dimples making an appearance.

You lightly smiled at her which surely looked more like a grimace than anything else. You looked for any parent missing their child but came out short. Taking your smile as an invitation, she began speaking.

"What you doing?" she said in a high-pitched innocent voice. She stared at you just waiting for a response.

Wanting her to move along you answered, "Just looking."

The little girl was not getting the hint that you didn't want to be bothered so she continued speaking.

"I'm Charlotte, but everyone calls me Charlie. You're very pretty. Which one are you getting? I have most of them and they're the best. I play tea parties with them and they protect me at night from the monsters."

Trying to keep up with everything she said you just nodded along.

"That's a very pretty name Charlotte and you too are very pretty." She smiled shyly and her cheeks flushed lightly.

"You talk funny," she giggled as she turned around to face the wall.

"Well, that's because I'm not from around here. I don't even know if I'm getting one," you said as pointed to the wall.

Turning around to face you she burrowed her eyebrows and exclaimed that I had to get one. They were, after all, the best thing here.

"Charlotte, I just lost someone I love and I wanted to buy them a gift to show that I still care for them," you said as you crouched to her level voice cracking slightly.

She nodded her head, the hat she had on falling forward covering her eyes. She smiled and lifted the hat into place giving me a view of her eyes. The innocence they held, no worries about anything.

"I think you should get them one to show that you still love them," she said as she started touching the different stuffed animals. "You still love them right?" she continued.

"Very much" you sighed.

"Pick one."

"I don't know which one she'll like."

"Can I help you?" she asked. She slowly raised her hand and grabbed mine pulling me towards the far end of the wall. Not pulling away you let her talk about the different animals and how they were all special to her.

"Which one is your favorite?" you asked. Might as well ask her opinion, she obviously knew what she was talking about and it's not like you even knew which one to get.

"The pony." She led me to the horses and there was a color assortment of them. Picking one up you just stared at it wondering why the horse was blue and green.

"I don't know about this," you said. You worried that this might not be the best plan, but you were far in too deep with Charlotte.

Her eyes opened in shock and placed her hands on her hips. "Of course, you have to, you love her and this will show her that you do. I'd love anyone who buys me a pony." Finally giving in, you sighed and asked which one.

"The pink one, it has a heart on the bottom." Picking it up you inspected it and you thought that it'd have to do. You could buy it, but that doesn't mean you'd have to give it to Nora. It's not like Charlotte would ever know.

"Ok, I'll get it." Charlotte squealed and hugged your legs. Not having any experience with children you just patted her head. Still holding onto your legs, she looked up and said, "She'll love it. Giving a pony is like super love. Everyone knows that."

Oh, Charlotte how I wish that was true.

Hearing someone call out "Charlie, Charlie!" she let go of your legs and jumped up waving her arms while calling out "Mommy, Mommy over here."

A blonde woman in her mid thirty's appeared and Charlotte ran towards her.

"I'm sorry if my Charlie here was bothering you," she said.

"Oh no she was a delight, she was very helpful," you said as you looked down at Charlotte. She smiled wide and giggled.

"C'mon Charlotte we have to go, say bye"

Charlotte let go of her mother and stepped towards you. You bent down and she wrapped her arms around your neck. Still holding onto your neck, she looked at you and in a flash she placed a kiss on your cheek and let go. She walked away with her mother and you were still on the floor in shock as to what just happened.

You never were fond of humans, but your encounter with Charlotte made you realize that not all humans are bad. Or maybe it's just the children. Maybe it's just the innocence of them that made them not bad.

Paying for the stuffed animal, you smiled and walked out.

Maybe this wouldn't change Nora's mind about anything but it was worth a try.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this might seem out of character, but I can't imagine Mary-Louise buying a pink pony on her own so this idea came to mind. Also, for some reason, I know that Mary hates humans but I feel like she would have a soft spot for small children. Let me know what you think and till next time.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm glad that many of you like this story as this motivates me to continue. Remember to review and let me know what you guys think about it and how I can make it more enjoyable.

Mary-Louise POV

 

With the pink stuffed animal in hand, you headed towards the house with a new sense of hope.

Christmas was days away and this year was going to be first in a long time that you were going to spend it alone. Not letting these thoughts cloud your good mood you kept on walking debating if and when you would give Nora the gift.

Once again silence welcomed you upon entering the house. Julian was still gone and you worried of what was to come. Entering your room, you softly threw the toy onto the bed and with a sigh you ran a hand through your hair. Were you really going to give Nora a stuffed animal? Is this really the way to show your eternal love for her? Shaking off these doubts you reasoned that even though it wasn't an extravagant gift it still showed that you cared deeply for her and that you missed her.

When to give it to her was now the main question. Would you give it to her in person or just drop it off and let her find it? If you gave the gift in person you risk the chance of her opening it in front of you and not liking it, while if you dropped it off you would never get to her reaction. Weighing the options, you decided that it was better if the gift was dropped off.

* * *

A few days passed and you still hadn't dropped off the gift, but it had to be done today as tomorrow was Christmas. Getting dressed you grabbed the stuffed animal and headed towards into town. Along the way you stopped a store to buy a gift bag and some paper.

Upon entering you were overwhelmed with the amount of red and green. Shaking your head in disbelief at all the Santa's, reindeers and snowmen plastered around the store you looked for the gift bags. A worker must have sensed you were lost because through your peripheral you saw a body dressed in red and green heading for you. Not in the mood for conversation you looked for a way out but you were stuck in the middle of the aisle with people blocking every possible exit. Once a clearing opened it was too late to escape as the worker was now in your face grinning as if she knew a secret and was just itching to tell it to someone. Urging to roll your eyes at her ridiculous costume which you realized was supposed to represent an elf you just opted to glare at her. Not put off by the glare she just kept on grinning.

"Do you need help finding anything?" she asked.

"No."

"You sure?"

"Yes," you responded in a harsh tone, angered at her persistence and presence.

"Positive?" she asked in a teasing voice, her blue eyes shining with amusement.

You refrained yourself from murdering her right there and then for being such a bother. And with a much exasperated sigh you asked where the gift bags were located.

At your response she smiled even bigger like if she was proud that she had finally cracked you open. She glided towards you and hooked her arm with yours and dragged you to where you assume the gift bags were. As you were being dragged you didn't listen to a word that the worker was saying but instead wondered as to why humans didn't believe in personal space and how for being such a weak species they sure had quite the grip.

Coming to a halt in front the bags she unhooked her arm and made a gesture towards them as to show that they were here all this time.

"Here they are"

"Yes I can see that" you replied in a monotone voice. Looking towards the bags, you began searching for one that would be a best fit for the stuffed animal. You didn't realize that the worker was still next to you till she faked a cough to announce her presence. Turning to face her you raised an eyebrow questioning as to why she still stood there.

"May I recommend one?" She asked as she bit her lip and batter her eyelashes at you. As if that was going to work on you.

Clearly she wasn't going to leave until she picked out everything and you not wanting to draw attention to yourself, just looked at her and slowly nodded.

She grabbed one that had a reindeer and when the nose on the reindeer was touched it would light up. Opening it up she then grabbed the toy from your hand and placed it inside. Holding it by the handles she handed it towards you and said "See perfect."

Just humming in agreement she continued "Now it just needs some tissue paper and a tag and then it's complete, follow me."

Not giving you the chance to object she began walking towards the front of the store as there was a table filled with an assortment of different colored paper and little tags. Going behind the table, she handed you a tag and a pen while she grabbed the bag and began to fill it with paper.

Opening the tag there printed was 'to' and 'from'.

Writing 'Nora' you debated whether to leave the 'from' empty, it's not like you needed to write anything, she would be able to tell it was yours just from the handwriting. In the end you wrote 'Mary-Louise' and handed the tag to the worker. She then tied it to one of the handles and then patted the bag as to say that it was done. The gift did look nice and were kind of glad she had helped you.

Grabbing the bag, you looked at her and with a faint smile, you said: " Thank you."

Leaning on the table she twirled her hair and let out a quite sigh and said "No problem."

Confused at her reaction, you started heading out but not before hearing her say "See you later Mary-Louise."

Stumped at her knowing your name you turned around but by surprise she wasn't at the desk you had seen her seconds ago. In fact, you didn't see her anywhere.

* * *

Walking toward the dorm rooms with the gift in hand you started feeling self conscious. Maybe this wasn't a good idea. It wasn't to late to turn around and go back to the house. No one would ever know you were even here. Finding her bedroom door, you gulped and raised a hand to knock but before your fist could make contact with the wood a voice interrupted.

"Nora's not in there."

Turning to face the voice, you resisted to roll your eyes at the sight of the witch, Bonnie, standing there with arms crossed, lips pursed, questioning eyes running over the gift bag.

Grabbing hold of the bag tighter you straightened your back even more and asked if she knew when she was coming back.

"Not that it should concern you but no, I don't know"

Anger rushed through you. Who was she to pass judgment over you? Nora may see something in her but you certainly don't.

Taking a deep breath and not wanting to create a mess by killing this nuisance of a witch you responded.

"That's all right, I'll just leave this here for her."

You set down the bag in front of the door, gave it one last glance and started walking towards the exit when Bonnie said something that made you stop in your tracks.

"You know, Nora's finally happy."

That was it. Nora may talk to her about her feelings but she didn't have the right to talk to me like that. How dare she say that Nora was finally happy. You turned to face her and with your vampire speed you backed her into the wall, your hand gripping her throat. Fear rushed through her eyes and you smiled. This was the Mary-Louise you missed. The one who didn't care about others. The one who did what she pleased.

Gripping at her throat tighter you gritted through clenched teeth "Don't you ever talk to me about things you have no clue about. Nora may have told you things but that doesn't give you the right to interfere with people's feelings." Gripping her throat tighter you continued "You know nothing about her so don't think that for one second you know more than me. You know nothing of our life so don't come here with your opinions and thoughts. How dare you."

Releasing her, she slid down the wall her hands going to her throat as she gasped for air. You looked around the hallway and sped away towards the exit not sparing her a glance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what did you guys think? Who is this girl that knows Mary-Louise? I don't know whether to include the kidnapping scene or just skip it. If I do include the kidnapping scene who do you guys want to save Mare. Till next time.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, I know it's been awhile but I've been busy with the new semester. I wrote this something just for you guys to know I'm alive and well (a little cold but ok) and I hope you guys are too. I have decided to not write the kidnapping scene as to I don't know how to incorporate it. This chapter is in Nora's POV, just to see how she's dealing with the breakup and all that jazz. Don't know if you guys read this but let me know what you guys think. I don't know when I'll have time to write again but I can promise you that I won't forget about this story.
> 
> Again, thank you to everyone who reviews, favorites, follows this story.
> 
> P.S: WHO ELSE IS EXCITED FOR THE NEW 100 SEASON? CAUSE I AM *happy tears*

Nora's POV

You broke up. Nothing more to it but it sure was one of the hardest things you had to. You told her how you couldn't do it anymore and it broke your heart just to see her nodding along with everything you were saying as if she had no control over herself. It had to be done you reasoned as you watched her step away from you and grab onto the railing. You could see the sadness that clouded her eyes flash into anger and then into something you just recently had discovered, insecureness.

She accused of you wanting this for a long time and how this had been your plan all along and for a second you hesitated. No, this hadn't been what you wanted but recently you had begun to wonder what if. What if you no longer were with Mary-Louise? Would you be able to do all the things you had wanted to do without having someone holding you back? Just to be able to do things and not having someone reprimand you for every little thing you did.

You love Mary-Louise and always will but things had recently been on the rocks. You were angered at the fact that she had decided to side with Julian after everything. How was she able to side with the one person who had made everyone so miserable? You never meant to throw the fact that you knew that he had provided the ring in her face. She was shocked that you knew and questioned if that was the whole reason for your fighting.

Oh, Mare. How you wished that was the reason. Her hands were slightly trembling, an observation you found to be odd as she was the one who was the most composed. This just showed that she was slowly breaking, her whole persona was being dismembered piece by piece as she angrily spat out all the reasons for your recent change.

You could tell this conversation wasn't turning the way she wanted to so in a last resort she stood up straight and with a shaky smile promised how she would change, how you were right and that she wasn't trying hard enough and how she just needed another chance to prove herself.

It was as if she was thrown overboard into a violent sea, desperately trying to grab onto anything but nothing was in her reach. She was drowning and she knew it but like in any desperate situation you try your hardest for a sign at a chance but today there was no sign. Registering that there wasn't going to be a sign she let go; hope dimming as she sank and now all that was visible was pure darkness.

Tears brimmed your eyes but none fell as you told her that it wasn't enough and that you just couldn't forget about the thing with Julian. Heartbroken and angered she questioned if it was worth throwing 133 years of being together for something like this. You knew that 133 years was a long time but you knew that this was a chance for you and not because you wanted it but because you needed it that's why you took it.

She asked for the note back but you were determined on not giving that up. She had written this in a time when all her walls were down and you don't know whether it was the heartache or masochism in you that made you fight for it. Why have something that you knew was going to cause pain every time you laid eyes upon it?

After several minutes of arguing she finally said that she couldn't have something so revealing about herself just floating around, taunting her, reminding her of what was supposed to be the happiest day of her life and how it turned out to be one of the worst. Catching you in a state of shock she reclaimed the note.

Silence surrounded you both and for a moment, everything felt at peace. Mary-Louise stepped forward and wrapped her arms around your waist and without any hesitation you wrapped yours around her neck. She rested her head upon your shoulders despite the fact that she was taller than you and you felt her trying to grasp onto you, like a lifesaver holding on to dear life, scared of letting go. Removing her hands from you, Mare looked straight into your eyes, placed a tender kiss on your cheek, lips soft as a butterfly's touch, soft and delicate and then walked away without looking back.

You stood there watching her walking away, her posture rigid, head held high, fists clenched at her side. You looked towards the river and sighed. This wasn't supposed to happen, you were supposed to get married to the one person who knew everything about you, the one who was protective but at the same time caring. The one who told you how pretty you looked every day, the one person who saw you as their whole world. You didn't realize you had tears running down your face till they landed on your hands breaking you out of your thoughts.

Heading back to the house you realized that everything wasn't going to be same. How were you supposed to the see the one person that still held your heart every day? Realizing that the living situation wasn't going to work you decided that it would be best if you moved out of the house, maybe start crossing off the things you had wanted to do since getting here.

Entering the house, the first thing you noticed was the lack of noise. They surely couldn't have left, not with everything that went on tonight. Heading up the stairs you heard footsteps and in the hallway, you saw Beau retreating to his room. You called out for him and he just looked back towards to you and nodded.

Eyebrows furrowed you questioned what the nod meant but instead of just asking him you went into the room, the one where everything went wrong. Entering you noticed that no one was there not even Lily's body except for Valerie who was staring intensely into the fireplace.

"Where did they take Lily?" you asked, wanting to know what they were planning on doing to her body. If they so much as hurt her, someone was going to pay.

"Don't worry, they went to go put her in a coffin. The burial is going to be in a few days," she responded.

Instead of letting you ask another question she turned to you and continued "Where's your other half? We wouldn't be in this situation if it wasn't for her, you know."

Not wanting to talk about Mary-Louise, not after what you just went through with her, responded: "I know, but I don't want to talk about it right now."

Valerie was not missing a beat and continued "Well we have to, she's obviously on Julian's side, Lily's dead because of her and you're here just defending her. Face it, Nora, she betrayed you and everyone in this house. She's made her bed and now she has to lay in it. This isn't just going to go away."

You knew on some level she was right but hearing all of those things hurt you to the core.

"I know Valerie, but at this moment, I don't want to talk about her. I just broke off an engagement, I just finished my 133-year relationship with her, my mother is dead and now I have nothing. The two people who understood me the most are now gone. So yes I know she betrayed us but I just can't forget about her. Just let me have this night."

Silenced at my response, she nodded and headed towards the door, stopping at the entrance when she looked at me, lightly smiled and said: "And here I thought you were the mean one." With a light chuckle, she left the room and out of the house.

"Bitch" you murmured to yourself.

You headed towards your room, entered and without a care for your belongings you began to dress into your nightwear and flopped onto the bed. Turning towards to the empty space on the bed you rested your hand upon the pillow and sighed. Grabbing it you embraced it and with a deep breath, you smelt it. Mary-Louise scent was all over it and you just clenched onto it tighter, burying the pillow into your chest and face, scared that if you let go of it would just walk away. Tears clouded your vision and with that, you closed your eyes and let sleep consume.

* * *

Morning came, sunlight shining through the windows, sun mocking you and your pain. You dressed and began packing all your belongings. You couldn't risk being in this house any longer. Drawers and doors were slammed closed as clothes and shoes were thrown into suitcases. Finally, you made a final run through the room seeing if you had forgotten anything and when nothing popped out at you, you headed down to the front door, lugging suitcases behind you.

You had called for a taxi and they were outside waiting for you. Opening the door, the cab driver noticed you and took the luggage from your hands and began to place them in the trunk. Closing the door, you got into the taxi as the driver finished placing the last items. When finished he got in and began driving out of the driveway. You looked back and saw the house getting smaller and smaller as he drove further and further away until the house was no longer in sight. When the house was no longer in sight you turned towards the front and with a sigh you proceeded to give him the address to the place in which you were going to stay at.

"Whitmore College Dorms please."

* * *

Gathering all the necessary information from the front desk, you received the key to your new room. A double room but at the moment you were the only one occupying it. Entering the room, you saw two plain beds side by side, a nightstand separating them. The room was a sight for sore eyes but figured that within a few days it would look much better once you started adding your personal touches to them. Throwing your luggage to the side you looked out the window and saw students laughing, smiling without a care for the world and that made you lightly smile. That's what you wanted; time without having to worry about anything. You just wanted to explore everything that this world had to offer and you weren't going to let anything stop you. You were saddened at the thought that you were on your own but before you could dwell on it a knock interrupted. Confused as to who would be at the door you cautiously opened it and what a surprise it was. It was the witch Bonnie. She was obviously surprised to see you too as her eyes widened and her mouth opened and closed trying to find words.

Her shock subsided and spoke, "Nora, what a surprise."

"Bonnie, yes what a surprise it is," you replied with a sarcastic voice.

Not put off by your tone she continued "What are you doing here, specifically in a dorm room?"

"I've decided out to give college life a try," you responded with a tight smile, not wanting to give out any information away.

She huffed out a chuckle, slightly rolled her eyes and responded "Ahh yes because living in a dorm is so fascinating. But seriously what are you doing here and where's your other half. Angelina Jolie wannabe bringing in the rest of your bags?"

Not finding the question as humorous as her you responded tersely "She's not with me and that's that." She got the hint at what you were implying and nodded. A few awkward seconds passed by before she spoke again.

"Well, I heard someone was moving into the dorm and wanted to welcome them, but since it's you I guess welcome?" she finished with a shoulder shrug.

"I guess the appropriate response is thank you, so thank you."

"Alright, so I'm gonna go" she made a gesture towards the door and started retreating.

"Ok."

Before she could exit through the door she spoke again "Nora, I guess since we are technically neighbors" points at the door next to yours " I guess if you need anything, you know where to find me," and with that she left.

Puzzled as to why she was being nice to you, shook your head and closed the door. It was time to unpack and make this room a little more inviting.

* * *

The day of Lily's funeral arrived and you were saddened at the fact that you were about to say bye to the mother who took you in and cared for you but you knew it had to be done. You met up with Valerie and once with her, you met up with Stefan and Damon in the woods. They both carried her coffin through the woods as snow softly fell. We reached the clearing and a few words were said in her honor. Damon kept asking you where Mary-Louise or Julian were but you honestly had no idea. You hadn't heard anything from them and were surprised and at the same time disappointed that Mary-Louise hadn't come looking for you. Maybe she truly had given up. You shut down Damon after he kept pestering for answers.

After the words were said you walked back to the dorms, not caring if they stayed or followed you. These past few days had been great. At first, it was difficult, not used to the amount of people who lived in the building but after a few days, you let down your walls and started enjoying yourself. Your relationship with Bonnie was ok as you finally had moved up from just greetings to full conversations. You felt like she was worthy of your trust and were glad that you had someone to talk to. You told her about your relationship with Mare and how you were hurt about the breakup. You explained to her about how you wanted to do so many things and how Mare always rejected your ideas.

Bonnie was understanding and talked about that maybe the break was a good idea. How maybe that this time apart might help you do the things that you wanted, to think about everything clearly and to really think about what you wanted.

You agreed with her but it still hurt. You missed the way she would slightly kick you in her sleep, how you teased her about how she could be a soccer player and how she would respond with a grimace and a light shove. You missed the way you would just stare into each other's eyes before getting up from the bed. You missed the random soft kisses she placed on your lips and cheeks as she moved around the room. You missed the way she would stare at you while you dressed and how she would say how you were the prettiest girl in the world. You missed the way her fingers argued over each other to see which one would climb down your wrist and introduce themselves to yours first. You missed the shy smiles she would give you when you caught her staring at you. It was as if the love in her eyes pulled you closer.

* * *

Christmas was tomorrow and it had been a few weeks since you had last seen Mary-Lou and wondered what she was up to. Whether she was spending Christmas alone or if she was with Julian. You wondered if she missed you as much as you missed her.

Bonnie sent you to the grocery store to gather some last minute ingredients for the meal she was making. You were still getting used to the new world but the thought of you finally having a friend and doing something so mundane as grocery shopping made you smile. You gathered all the ingredients with the help of some employees but overall you had succeeded.

You headed back to the dorm ready to help Bonnie with the meal. You climbed up the stairs to your room and were surprised to see Bonnie getting up from the floor holding her throat and catching her breath that you didn't see the present that was placed in front of your door.

"Bonnie, what happened?" you questioned, curious as to why she was on the floor and holding her neck.

"Your ex-happened, that's what," she responded angered at the situation.

Stunned as to what she said, you looked around the hallway to see if Mare was still lurking around.

"What? Mare was here? What did she want? What did she say? What did she do?" you asked quickly wanting to know all the answers.

"Nora, calm down. Yes, she was here. She came to drop off a gift. I might have said something to her and she didn't react quite well to it and got angry but don't worry I'm fine."

That was when you noticed the gift bag in front of your door. You smiled at the design of the bag and wondered where she could have gotten something like that. You also smiled at the fact that even though you broke up she still went out of her way and got you a gift. You were broken out of your reverie by Bonnie talking to you.

"Go ahead, give me the groceries and once you're done opening your gift just come to my room and we can get started."

Curiosity and excitement took over you so you just nodded at her and picked up the bag and entered your room. You noticed that the bag was light and that the paper wasn't just thrown into the bag to make a pile at the top but rather it was placed delicately in every corner of the bag, making sure that the paper covered what was inside. You caught sight at the tag hanging on one of the handles and opened it.

All that was written was your name but you knew exactly from who it was. Not just because Bonnie told you but because of the handwriting you had come to learn and love. The sharp letters that you knew too well.

Sitting on the bed, you placed the bag on your lap and proceeded to take out each piece of paper one by one, wanting to hold onto this moment. Paper now removed you grabbed what was inside and gasped as you took out the pink stuffed animal from the bag.

You looked at the toy and realized that it was, in fact, a pony with a purple mane. It was something so simple but yet so perfect. You ran your hands over it and softly started petting it as if it were a real animal. You held up it up and saw that it had a heart on the bottom and seeing the printed glittered heart you just smiled. You held it close to your chest and took a whiff. You smelled the artificial hair and hidden behind that smell you smelt something that you had grown accustomed to. It was Mare's scent. It was very subtle but it was there.

You don't know when you started crying but you just let the tears run down your cheeks as you smiled and held onto the stuffed animal rocking softly side to side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So how did I do? Let me know what you guys think and hope you guys have a great weekend :)


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